Take a visual trip with psychedelic posters

DENVER - A new exhibition at the University of Denver aims to bring the artists of iconic psychedelic concert posters of the 1960's to the forefront.

Visual Trips: The Psychedelic Poster Movement in San Francisco is a journey into the artistic movement featuring 200 first-print printing posters, photographs, mechanical drawings and acetate sheets. Visitors can see how the posters went from drawings to the several layers needed to create the colorful works of art.

Associate art professor at DU's School of Art and Art History, Scott Montgomery, says the exhibition has significant historical context that has previously been ignored by the "higher-art" world.

Most people look at the posters and associate concert posters with the would-be music legends of the time including The Doors, Santana, Grateful Dead and the Beatles. But, the stories behind the poster's designers go far beyond the musical context they were known for and explore the political and cultural influences the posters represented.

"These were not just a bunch of hippies drawing on napkins," said Montgomery. Even 45 years later, some of the same issues of war and legalization are still being discussed.

Some of the artists of the poster movement featured include Stanley Mouse, Rick Griffin, Victor Moscoso, Bonnie MacLean, Wes Wilson and Lee Conklin.

The posters are vibrant and meticulously detailed. Some were so popular that people were taking them down moments after they were posted to promote concerts -- a sign to why they are probably still found in dorm rooms today.

Also on display are the 4D posters of Victor Moscoso. Something discovered by accident by the artist, who had originally layered out several colors of a butterfly to a poster. When he gave it to friend who had Christmas lights set up, they discovered the images on the poster moved and changed. From there, a series was born.

The exhibition runs at the the University of Denver's Vicki Myhren Gallery from Oct 3 through Nov 16 and is free to the public.